KPMG Australia
has named former advisory boss
Gary Wingrove
as its new chief executive after a tough year in which it slipped to No. 3 out of the big four accounting firm in terms of revenue

Outgoing chief executive
Geoff ­Wilson
will take a role as Asia Pacific regional chief operating officer based in Singapore or Hong Kong.

Insiders believe Mr Wingrove’s consistency and ability to win over clients will stand KPMG in good stead as it works to beat off rival Deloitte Australia, which is fast approaching its revenue generation figure.

He will take up the new role in July.

KPMG Australia chairman
Peter Nash
says the firm is expecting “moderate growth" for the year to June 30, 2013, which, in accounting circles, typically means 3- 5 per cent.

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“We’ve weathered economic times that have been complex and tricky, and we’ve come through fairly well all things considered," said Mr Nash.

Mr Wingrove says his priorities will be “growth" and “execution".

“It is more important in lower growth environments to place investment in the right places," he said.

Rival Ernst & Young overtook KPMG on annual sales in the 2011-12 financial year, claiming second place among the the big four firms with revenue of $1.2 billion. KPMG slipped to third with $1.12 billion. Deloitte wasjust behind, passing $1 billion for the first time, and PwC retained the top spot, notching $1.4 billion in revenue for the year.

Other management changes will be announced at KPMG soon.
Martin Blake
, KPMG NSW chairman, and
Ian Hancock
, head of KPMG’s IT advisory group, are tipped as a front-runners to lead the advisory practice.